Published on May 10, 2003
In an age where even the most pathetic band or artist can get a
“greatest hits” compilation moments after reaching the top of the
charts (and subsequently flaming out), it’s almost unbelievable
that the Canadian hard-rock trio Rush didn’t get a best-of until
they changed labels from Mercury to Atlantic in 1989. Of course,
now you can’t turn a corner without being offered some new
variation of a Rush best-of collection, but
Chronicles was indeed the first, and in some ways, the best,
of the batch.
Now, anyone who has followed Geddy Lee and company for any
length of time will undoubtedly find holes with any compilation –
even this two-disc set. But if you take an objective look at
Chronicles, you’ll find that every one of Rush’s 15 albums
to that point get fair play — including all three live albums,
which get one selection each.
Whoever decided on the selection and running order of this set
did two smart things right off of the bat. The first was keeping
things running in chronological order – at least, in terms of the
order in which the albums were released. By doing this, not only is
the listener given a comfort zone to take it all in, they’re also
allowed a fair opportunity to hear how Rush grew from the opening
guitar lines of “Finding My Way” to such complicated masterpieces
as “The Big Money” and “Manhattan Project.” In a way, it’s like
listening to a time capsule; each song is a particular item
carefully placed inside.
The second smart thing – and, believe me, I’d love to know how
they pulled this off – was to include “Show Don’t Tell,” a song
from Rush’s then-upcoming album
Presto. Amazing… not only were they able to put the
first single from the new album on this set, but they were able to
do it when the disc was being released on a competitor’s label. Who
cares if “Show Don’t Tell” wasn’t one of Rush’s strongest songs
from around that time?
There really is only one thing lacking on
Chronicles — namely, the element of surprise. People like
me would pick up
Chronicles because we wanted to own every thing that Rush
released, and barring the inclusion of “Show Don’t Tell,” this
package doesn’t throw the listener any rarities as a bone. I might
have chosen to include the live version of “Vital Signs” which was
the b-side of the “New World Man” 45 (remember those, kids?), just
to give the diehard fans a reason to part with $25 other than blind
loyalty.
And while this set is a great place for someone new to the scene
of Rush to start off with, it sometimes does feel a little too
familiar. In defense of Rush and the record label, though, that
could be blamed on rock radio, which has latched onto many of these
songs and played them to death. Exceptions are granted, though, for
tracks like “Finding My Way,” “Anthem” and “Bastille Day” – three
tracks from Rush’s first three albums which almost never get heard
unless you’ve got the album cranking full-blast from the
turntable.
Yes, diehards like me will look at
Chronicles and wonder why tracks like “YYZ” didn’t make the
cut (never mind the fact that “La Villa Strangiato” represents the
instrumental side of Rush quite well, thank you) or why more tracks
unknown to the radio waves didn’t get dusted off for this set.
Still, one really can’t point too many fingers at this set, and
Chronicles does live up to its name as a true representation
of Rush’s best work.